UK public facing another weekend of worry

Coronavirus daily tracker: March 27th 2020

Today’s figures show that more than half (54%) of the UK public are at least very worried about COVID-19.

As we settle into life under lockdown, the government’s approval rating has fallen six points from 53% to 47%.

The majority of us (80%) are following all or most of the government’s advice, but this is down three points from yesterday. Could isolation fatigue be setting in already?

Two in five (41%) say they are completely self-isolating. This group are disproportionately female, in the younger (16-34) and older (55+) age groups, and are more likely to live in London, the Midlands, or Wales.

Half (52%) of people left their house on Wednesday, but that’s down 20 points from the same point last week. Contrary to those self-isolating, men and the middle-aged (35-54) are the most likely to leave their house.

Almost half (49%) of the country are now working from home when they wouldn’t ordinarily, but a third (31%) still say that their work requires them to attend their regular place of employment.

Just one in 12 (8%) paid a visit to friends or family.

Panic buying seems to have calmed down

Just a quarter (25%) of those who left their house on Wednesday went to the supermarket and one in six (16%) visited another shop that wasn’t a supermarket.

One in eight (12%) reported not seeing any empty shelves in the supermarket – the highest level since we started tracking.

Government, scientist and NHS ratings

Around half (50%) of people are saying that they watched the Prime Minister’s daily press conference live.

Both Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty and Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance’s approval ratings have climbed 12 points in the last week, from 48% to 60%, and 44% to 56% respectively. The NHS’ approval rating still stands lofty at 82%.

However, as we settle into life under lockdown, the government’s approval rating has fallen six points from 53% to 47%.

We will be updating our coronavirus tracker daily and weekly as this unprecedented pandemic unfolds. The full data set can be downloaded here. Please get in touch for more information.